Javier Betancourt laced a double to left field that plated two which capped a four run fourth inning and the Whitecaps beat the Captains 7-2 on Tuesday. In the bottom of the fourth, West Michigan sent eight hitters to the plated and scored five times to take a 5-2 lead. The Whitecaps used five hits and a hit batter in the inning to score the five runs.

The Lake County Captains split a double header with the Beloit Snappers, aided by a furious comeback in game one. The Captains were down, 4-1, going into the bottom of the sixth inning in a seven-inning game when they scored four runs. Beloit answered with a four spot of its own before the Captains added another four runs in the final frame to take the win. Beloit won the second game 6-3.

The WAR Room is back again, bringing you the 2014 advanced stats for every Cleveland minor leaguer. After looking at the hitters last week, today we focus on the pitchers, including Mitch Brown. Brown is finding some strong success in Lake County this year, a very positive step for the 2012 second round pick's development. Join Jim Piascik as he breaks down Brown's season to date and the rest of the pitchers in the system as he takes you into The WAR Room.

Trevor Frank pitched a scoreless ninth inning to earn his tenth save of the season and the Captains beat Wisconsin 2-1 on Friday night. In the ninth, Frank allowed two hits and had runners at the corners with one out but struck out the final two hitters to preserve the win. In all, Frank struck out three, or the side in his one inning. With the win the Captains snapped their eight game losing streak.

Corey Kluber's dominant outing at the major league level may be (rightfully) getting most of the attention today, but the organization's starter one level down also made some noise Thursday. Toru Murata may not be having the best year, but you could not tell Thursday as the right-hander carried a no-hitter into the sixth inning. Join Jim Piascik as he recaps Murata's big night, takes a look at Carlos Moncrief's plate discipline this season, and much more as he takes you Around the Farm.

The Lake County Captains gave up seven runs in the top of the second inning no their way to a 7-4 loss to the Wilmington Timber Rattlers. Lake County didn't manage any of its runs until the eighth inning when the Captains' got three runs across the plate. Luis Lugo took the loss after giving up five runs in 1.2 innings of work.

In this week’s Minor Happenings, the IBI's Tony Lastoria takes a look at the emergence of Sean Brady who is another good lefty starting pitching prospect for the Indians in the lower levels of the minors. He also talks about the early impressions that catcher Francisco Mejia has left so far this season, the Dominican Summer League sensation Gabriel Mejia, provides a ton of quotes from the Indians front office on players like Ryan Merritt, Cody Anderson, Yandy Diaz, Tyler Holt and others, and also provides some insight and information on players like Gabriel Arias, Jordan Smith, Clint Frazier, Taylor Murphy, and more!

The Captains have fallen victim to a seven-game losing skid, a tough 180 flip from the six-game winning streak the team crafted just two weeks ago. The team remains the worst-hitting squad in the league with a collective .239 average, but they lead the Midwest League in home runs with 85. Here's the week in review for the Captains.

Though the lower levels of the minors are more about development than raw results, it is always great to see a top prospect putting up strong numbers down in Lake County. Clint Frazier has pulled that off of late, surging in a big way in the second half of the season. He was at it again Wednesday, so Jim Piascik broke down his performance compared to another first round pick who went through Lake County recently, Francisco Lindor. Join Jim as he recaps Frazier's night and all the action from the minor league side as he takes you Around the Farm.

The Lake County Captains gave up five runs to the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers in the first inning and could not recover on their way to an 8-4 loss. Starter Dace Kime gave up all eight runs on nine hits in the first four innings of the game before the Lake County bullpen finished the game on a scoreless streak of five innings. Clint Frazier went three for three with a home run in the loss.

The Indians have a lot of young, talented pitchers scattered throughout the lower levels of their organization and the one with the most upside of them all might be Low-A left-handed pitcher Luis Lugo. The IBI's Tony Lastoria recently had a chance to sit down and talk to the talented lefty and notes the strides he has made this season...

The Lake County Captains forced extra innings before giving up three runs in the bottom of the 10th to lose to the Quad Cities River Bandits, 5-2. Lake County scored in the top of the ninth to tie the game after Quad Cities tallied both of its regulation runs in the bottom of the second. James Stokes and Trevor Frank combined for four innings of scoreless relief in the loss.

The Lake County Captains (15-14, 42-57) had the leading run at the plate in the top of the ninth with two outs, but they could not tie the game as they fell to the Quad Cities River Bandits (14-15, 49-49) 2-1 on Sunday evening. The Captains have dropped five-straight games on the heels of a six-game winning streak.

The WAR Room is back again, bringing you the 2014 advanced stats for every Cleveland minor leaguer. After looking at the pitchers last week, today we focus on the hitters. In particular, Jim Piascik looks at the impressive seasons of Jesus Aguilar, Jose Ramirez, and Giovanny Urshela, all of whom look ready to contribute in Cleveland. Join Jim as he writes about all that and more and takes you into The WAR Room.

Though the season has not gone as planned for Jerrud Sabourin, you would not know it based off Saturday night. Sabourin pulled off a rare event in baseball, as Arthur Kinney recaps. In addition to Sabourin, Arthur writes about the season Alex Monsalve is putting together, Anthony Gallas big doubleheader, and much more as he takes you Around the Farm.

The Quad Cities River Bandits (13-15, 48-49) took advantage of a wild fifth inning to add some insurance runs and the pitching staff held the Lake County Captains (15-13, 42-56) to only three hits. Quad Cities took the series opener 6-0 on Saturday night.

Brian Ruiz's family took advantage of opportunity when it moved from the Dominican Republic to Cleveland. Now, Ruiz is seizing the opportunity to play professional baseball with his hometown team. Ruiz continues to live at home on the city's West Side, just 30 minutes from Classic Park, home of the low-A Lake County Captains. Join Stephanie Metzger as she profiles Ruiz about playing so close to home and much more.

Cedar Rapids gets the benefit of a late inning call and defeated the Captains 6-5 in 11 innings. With runners at the corners, a sharp ground ball was hit to third base and Grant Fink threw home. Richard Stock tagged the runner before he touched the plate, but the runner was ruled safe and the Captains fell 6-5. The Kernels swept the Captains with the win and Lake County has lost three straight games on the heels of their six game winning-streak.

The major league team got back into the swing of things Friday, returning from the All-Star break in grand style. But there was still action down on the farm, including Mahoning Valley's Leo Castillo making his case to get back up to Lake County. Join Arthur as he recaps the night, including Castillo's performance, Shawn Morimando's second outing in Akron, and much more as he takes you Around the Farm.

In today’s Minor Happenings, Jim Piascik fills in for Tony and take a look at High-A Carolina pitcher Adam Plutko's adjustment to the level after a stellar debut in Lake County. He also breaks down Clint Frazier's recent surge and how the 2013 first round pick has progressed this season. Finally, Jim talked to Double-A Akron RubberDucks pitching coach Jeff Harris about Cody Anderson and the adjustments he is making, Joe Colon and his approach to pitching, and much more.

Available IBI Books

The 2014 Cleveland Indians Baseball Insider book featuring the Indians' Top 100 Prospects and more is now available. Also, previous editions from 2008-2012 are also available at a discounted rate. Just click on the book image for more information. Thanks again for all the support!